VAUNT
What does "VAUNT" mean?
To boast about or praise something, especially excessively.
Meanings
- To speak boastfully of; to brag about, often used in the participle 'vaunted'. He vaunted his achievements at every dinner. formal
- A boast or display of self-praise. Her quiet record outshone his loud vaunt. archaic
Did you know?
- To 'vaunt' is, etymologically, to talk empty: the word descends from Latin 'vanus' ('empty, vain') - making it kin to 'vain' and 'vanity', so the boast carries its hollowness in its DNA.
Word origin
From Old French 'vanter' ('to boast'), from Late Latin 'vanitare' ('to utter empty things'), a frequentative of Latin 'vanus' ('empty, vain') - so to vaunt is, at root, to talk empty.
Remember it
VAUNT = VAin + taUNT - a boast that is both empty (vain) and aimed at others (taunt).
A little poem
He vaunted loudest in the emptiest hall,
where echo, not applause, returned his call.
couplet
What it teaches
The loudest boast is built from the thinnest air; what is full rarely needs to announce itself.
Quick facts
What does VAUNT mean?
To boast about or praise something, especially excessively.
Is VAUNT a valid word?
Yes — VAUNT is one of the answer words in Wordul, the daily word game.
How many letters is VAUNT?
VAUNT has 5 letters and 1 syllable.
Where does VAUNT come from?
From Old French 'vanter' ('to boast'), from Late Latin 'vanitare' ('to utter empty things'), a frequentative of Latin 'vanus' ('empty, vain') - so to vaunt is, at root, to talk empty.
What can VAUNT teach us?
The loudest boast is built from the thinnest air; what is full rarely needs to announce itself.
How players do
Be the first to solve it.